Sciatic schwannoma spanning the sciatic notch: removal by an anterior, transabdominal approach.

We describe a sciatic schwannoma spanning the sciatic notch in a 39-year-old woman with persistent pelvic pain after caesarean delivery. The tumour was detected by pelvic CT scan and MRI. Anterior transabdominal surgery allowed the en bloc removal of both the pelvic and the buttock component of the tumour.

Hypertrophic inflammatory neuropathy involving bilateral brachial plexus.

BACKGROUND: The present case is an example of hypertrophic inflammatory neuropathy (HIN). This entity is a rare tumor-like, chronic inflammatory, focal or multifocal, mainly demyelinating neuropathy of unknown origin, most frequently involving the brachial plexus. CASE DESCRIPTION: The authors describe a 67-year-old man presenting with a nodular mass in his right supraclavicular fossa. A nodular mass grossly resembling a schwannoma originating from a single nerve fascicle was surgically removed from the right C6 spinal nerve. Histologically, endoneurial edema, fibrosis, focal chronic inflammation, and extensive "onion bulb" formation were seen. Electron microscopy studies and immunohistochemistry proved that the onion bulb-forming cells were schwannian in nature and that the whorls of onion bulbs surrounded a generally demyelinated axon. Three months following surgery the patient developed acute painless paralysis of his right biceps brachii muscle that rapidly reversed; after that he remained neurologically asymptomatic. MRI revealed multiple fusiform mass lesions involving the brachial plexus bilaterally. Electrophysiologic studies demonstrated a bilateral, asymmetrical, mainly demyelinating neuropathy involving the brachial plexus; they failed to reveal any abnormality suggestive of generalized neuropathy. CONCLUSION: HIN is different from other focal tumor-like neuropathies and in particular from localized hypertrophic neuropathy (LHN).

Interruption of the radial nerve at proximal level: reconstruction following anterior transposition.

The authors describe two cases of radial paralysis due to interruption in the proximal level, treated by autologous nerve grafting, following anterior transposition. At long-term follow-up, in one case after 12 years, there was good functional recovery, while in the second case there was still no recovery after 2 years. The surgical technique involving anterior transposition of the nerve is described, which in this type of lesion facilitates neurorrhaphy.

Primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the sciatic nerve followed by localization in the central nervous system: case report and review of the literature.

OBJECTIVE AND IMPORTANCE: A unique case of primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the sciatic nerve followed by multiple loci in the central nervous system is described. CLINICAL PRESENTATION: The lesion occurred in a 44-year-old immunocompetent man with a palpable mass in the left popliteal fossa and a 10-month history of progressive weakness and numbness of the left foot. The tumor was a diffuse large lymphoma of B-cell origin of an intermediate grade of malignancy according to the criteria of the International Working Formulation. INTERVENTION: Because diagnosis of the malignant lymphoma was performed on frozen section, resection of the nerve trunk was avoided. The patient was treated with radiotherapy and chemotherapy. At 6 months after the discovery, biopsy, and treatment of the sciatic nerve lymphoma, other lesions demonstrating the same histological features were observed in the central nervous system. The patient died 4 years and 2 months after presentation as a result of the central nervous system lesions and without clinical evidence of systemic extraneural localization. CONCLUSION: A review of the literature indicates that primary peripheral nerve lymphomas occur in the sciatic nerve. These cases, and the case described in our study, share common clinicopathological findings that justify discussing them separately as distinct entities.

Giant sacral schwannoma: removal by an anterior, transabdominal approach.

We report a case of a giant intrasacral schwannoma expanding into the presacral space. 'En bloc' resection was accomplished by an anterior, transabdominal approach. The advantages of such a procedure are discussed.

Isolated injury to a major branch of the posterior interosseous nerve of the forearm with surgical repair.

We report the case of a patient who sustained an isolated injury to one of the two main branches of the posterior interosseous nerve of the forearm. Repair by epineurial suture was followed by complete recovery.

Ganglionic cyst of the deep peroneal nerve: description of a case.

The case of a patient with a small intraneural ganglion of the deep peroneal nerve is described, including the clinical and electrophysiological characteristics and the course four years after surgery.

Primary systemic amyloidosis with giant hepatomegaly and portal hypertension: a case report and a review of the literature.

Amyloidosis is a manifestation of a group of diseases resulting from the variable infiltration of multiple organs by a fibrillar protein called amyloid. Hepatic involvement in amyloidosis is common both in the primary and in the secondary forms, whereas clinically-dominant liver amyloidosis is relatively rare. The authors describe a case of primary systemic amyloidosis with giant hepatomegaly, portal hypertension and renal insufficiency; the patient did not develop jaundice, ascites or gastrointestinal bleeding but died 6 months later, death being due to cerebral haemorrhage.

Benign solitary nerve sheath tumors of the spinal accessory nerve in the posterior triangle of the neck. Report of two cases.

A case of solitary schwannoma and one of solitary neurofibroma originating from the spinal accessory nerve in the posterior triangle of the neck are described. Location of such neoplasms in this region is exceptional. The authors emphasize the importance of accurately enucleating the mass; when it is impossible to preserve the continuity of the neural pathway, nerve repair should be considered.

The role of epidermal growth factor in the pathogenesis of peptic ulcer disease.

Duodenal biopsies obtained from seven normal subjects and six ulcerous patients were cultured in vitro for 30 min at 37 degrees C under various experimental conditions. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) and somatostatin released in the culture medium were determined by radioimmunoassay. Under basal conditions, EGF and somatostatin levels were significantly higher in normal subjects (11.49 +/- 3.07 ng/mg protein and 3.06 +/- 0.8 ng/mg protein, respectively) than in ulcerous patients (6.9 +/- 1.98 ng/mg protein and 1.75 +/- 1.23 ng/mg protein, respectively). However, when antibodies to somatostatin and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) were added together to the culture media, in ulcerous patients, EGF levels also were lower as absolute values, but were higher as a percentage of variation than controls (p less than 0.05). The fall of EGF secretion from tissue cultures of ulcerous patients could be the consequence of endocrine cellular loss or damage, rather than the cause of ulceration. Moreover, the EGF-producing cells around the lesion in ulcerous patients seems to be hyperactive, and this hyperfunction of EGF-producing cells might contribute to the in vivo repair of tissue damage.

Neuropathy caused by spontaneous intraneural hemorrhage: case report.

A case of ulnar neuropathy at the elbow produced by spontaneous intraneural hemorrhage in a patient with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and thrombocytopenia is reported. Intraneural hemorrhage in patients with bleeding disorders occurs infrequently. It consists of acute intrafascicular bleeding, presumably producing very high elevations of endoneurial fluid pressure. The clinical features and treatment of this condition are considered, the pertinent literature is reviewed, and the involved pathophysiological mechanisms are discussed.

Ganglionic cysts of the peroneal nerve at the knee: CT and surgical correlation.

The CT appearance of two cases of ganglionic cysts of the common peroneal nerve at the knee is reported. In both cases the ganglion appeared as a cystic unenhanced lesion of mucoid density. The radiological findings were confirmed by surgery. The differences in the appearance of intraneural and extraneural ganglia are discussed.

Ulnar neuropathy due to a carpal ganglion: the diagnostic contribution of CT.

Clinical features and electrophysiologic studies indicated a lesion of the ulnar nerve in the wrist of a 50-year-old man. CT of this region revealed a ganglion inside Guyon's canal. Surgical exploration disclosed a carpal ganglion compressing the ulnar nerve just proximal to its division.

Sural neuropathy produced by intraneural ganglion.

The authors describe an intraneural ganglion of the sural nerve at the ankle. This cause for sural neuropathy has never previously been cited. Resection of the sural nerve together with the indwelling cyst is suggested.

CT scan and surgical treatment of traumatic iliacus hematoma with femoral neuropathy: case report.

Iliacus hematoma should be suspected as the cause of femoral neuropathy in cases of minor trauma in teenagers, especially when the onset of paralysis is delayed and therefore an acute traction injury of the nerve is unlikely. In our 14-year-old female patient the condition followed minor trauma. In such cases CT scan should be performed. When this reveals a hematoma and the nerve lesion is rapidly progressing or complete, the hematoma should be promptly evacuated.

A hazard of craniotomy in the sitting position: the posterior compartment syndrome of the thigh. Case report.

A bilateral posterior compartment syndrome of the thigh with a sciatic neuropathy in a patient following a craniotomy in the sitting position is described. The pathophysiology of the sciatic nerve dysfunction is discussed and the diagnostic value of computerized tomography is emphasized. Prompt decompression of the nerve is suggested.